Illinois is Firing a Particle Beam Underground at South Dakota?

Scientists are much braver than most of the rest of us. Don't believe me? Try this on for size. Scientists in Illinois are about to fire a particle beam underground at South Dakota and they're not even a little bit nervous about it apparently.

Get our free mobile app

Illinois scientists preparing to fire a particle beam (actually, it's a neutrino beam) at a lab in South Dakota is part of a huge $3 billion dollar project according to a new article by Business Insider.

You might recall that a few weeks ago I shared the news about Fermilab in Illinois and the possibilities that it might be able to create a black hole. (Spoiler Alert: Don't worry about the black hole) This is the lab that is working with the Sanford Underground Research Facility in South Dakota. They are currently building a massive tunnel underground.

Why is Illinois firing a neutrino beam at South Dakota exactly?

After the Fermilab scientists fire this super-duper high power beam at Sanford Underground Research Facilities, the story says the "beam will then travel underground for 800 miles to the detectors at the South Dakota Sanford Underground Research Facility". The Illinois and South Dakota scientists say they will watch how the neutrinos change as they travel that large distance.

The project may help the Illinois and South Dakota scientists to "unlock the mysteries of the universe". That sounds impressive. The Fermilab scientists are really tackling some big scientific questions.

This shows it's true that Illinois really is firing a particle beam at South Dakota, but it's for a good cause - or at least we hope so.